Photo: Mike Bird / Pexels. Illustrative photograph.
The car test you are preparing for is the category B test, and passing it decides exactly what you can drive. A category B licence in Great Britain lets you drive vehicles with up to 8 passenger seats and a maximum authorised mass (MAM) of 3,500 kg, or 4,250 kg for electric and hydrogen vehicles. You can also tow a trailer of up to 3,500 kg, as long as the car and trailer together don’t exceed 7,000 kg. This guide shows what your car test pass covers, how the test car can restrict it, which vehicles need a further test, and the codes that may appear on your licence afterwards.
What a category B pass lets you drive
If you passed your car test on or after 1 January 1997:
- Cars and vans with up to 8 passenger seats.
- MAM up to 3,500 kg for petrol and diesel vehicles, including hybrids.
- MAM up to 4,250 kg for electric or hydrogen (zero-emission) vehicles. An extra 750 kg is allowed only for equipment for disabled passengers.
- A trailer up to 3,500 kg MAM, with a combined MAM of no more than 7,000 kg.
- Motor tricycles over 15 kW, if you are over 21.
A vehicle’s MAM is normally shown on a plate or sticker on the vehicle and in the owner’s manual. Towing in detail: towing a trailer or caravan on a car licence.
Passed before 1 January 1997?
You can usually drive a vehicle and trailer combination up to 8,250 kg MAM, and a minibus with a trailer over 750 kg. Check your driving licence information online to see your exact entitlements.
How your test car limits the licence
If you take your test in an automatic, you can drive category B vehicles, but only automatics. See automatic licence restrictions.
Which vehicles need a different test
Anything outside category B means a separate test for that category. The full list:
| Category | What you can drive |
|---|---|
| AM | Mopeds: 2 or 3 wheels, design speed over 25 km/h (15.5 mph) up to 45 km/h (28 mph). Also light quad bikes. |
| P | 2-wheeled vehicles, design speed over 45 km/h up to 50 km/h (31 mph), up to 50cc if petrol. |
| Q | 2 or 3 wheels without pedals, up to 50cc, design speed no more than 25 km/h. Includes trial e-scooters. |
| A1 | Light motorbikes up to 125cc and 11 kW. Motor tricycles up to 15 kW. |
| A2 | Motorbikes up to 35 kW. |
| A | Any motorbike. Motor tricycles over 15 kW. |
| B1 | 4-wheeled vehicles up to 400 kg unladen (550 kg for goods vehicles). |
| B | Cars: see above. |
| BE | A 3,500 kg vehicle with a trailer. Trailer size depends on your BE ‘valid from’ date: any size if before 19 January 2013, up to 3,500 kg if on or after that date. |
| C1 | Vehicles 3,500 to 7,500 kg, with a trailer up to 750 kg. |
| C1E | C1 with a trailer over 750 kg, combined up to 12,000 kg. |
| C | Vehicles over 3,500 kg, with a trailer up to 750 kg. |
| CE | C with a trailer over 750 kg. |
| D1 | Minibuses: up to 16 passenger seats, up to 8 metres long, trailer up to 750 kg. |
| D1E | D1 with a trailer over 750 kg, combined up to 12,000 kg. |
| D | Any bus with more than 8 passenger seats, trailer up to 750 kg. |
| DE | D with a trailer over 750 kg. |
| f, G, H, k, l, M, n | Agricultural tractor, road roller, tracked vehicles, mowing machine or pedestrian-controlled vehicle, electrically propelled vehicle, trolley vehicles, exempt from duty. |
You don’t need a driving licence for electric bikes, mobility scooters or powered wheelchairs.
When you can take each test: minimum ages (Highway Code Annex 2)
| Category | Minimum age |
|---|---|
| AM (moped) | 16 |
| A1 | 17 |
| A2 | 19 |
| A | 21 through progressive access (after 2 years on A2), or 24 through direct access |
| Tricycles over 15 kW | 21 |
For cars, most people can start learning to drive, and take the category B test, at 17.
Motorcycle tests: CBT, theory and modules 1 and 2
- Learner riders MUST complete Compulsory Basic Training (CBT) before riding on the road.
- After CBT, you can ride a motorcycle up to 125cc and 11 kW, or a moped, unaccompanied with L plates (D or L plates in Wales) for up to 2 years.
- To get a full licence, you must pass the motorcycle theory test and the module 1 and module 2 practical tests.
- No pillion passengers and no trailers until you pass.
- Car drivers: if you passed your car test before 1 February 2001, you can ride a moped without L plates. If you passed after that date, you MUST complete CBT before riding a moped on the road; once you have both CBT and the car pass (CBT done no more than 2 years before the car test, or any time after it), GOV.UK says you can ride a moped up to 50cc without L plates or a moped test.
Sharing the road with riders: Rules 83 to 88 and Rule 211.
Codes your test can put on your licence
The codes printed on the back of your licence show conditions you must meet. Two link directly to test day: 01 if you need glasses or contact lenses to pass the eyesight check, and 78 if you pass in an automatic. The ones new drivers see most:
| Code | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 01 | Eyesight correction, for example glasses or contact lenses |
| 78 | Restricted to vehicles with automatic transmission |
| 96 | Allowed to drive a vehicle and trailer where the trailer weighs at least 750 kg and the combination is between 3,500 and 4,250 kg |
| 101 | Not for hire or reward |
| 118 | Start date is for earliest entitlement |
Common questions
Can I drive a minibus on a car licence?
Only a vehicle with up to 8 passenger seats counts as category B. More than 8 passenger seats needs D1 or D, unless your pre-1997 entitlements cover it. Check your driving licence information on GOV.UK.
Can I drive a 3.5 tonne van?
Yes, if its MAM is no more than 3,500 kg, or 4,250 kg for an electric or hydrogen van.
Can I ride a 125cc motorbike on my car licence?
Not as a full licence holder. A car licence does not include category A1, so you would ride as a learner, and learner riders MUST complete CBT first.
Are Northern Ireland categories the same?
Driving licence categories are different in Northern Ireland. Check nidirect.
Can I drive an e-scooter?
Trial e-scooters come under category Q. Check the trial rules for your area before riding one.
Can I ride a mini moto or off-road bike on the road?
No. Highway Code Rules 157 and 158 say mini motos, motorised scooters (go peds) and off-road-only motorcycles, trikes and quad bikes do not meet road vehicle standards, so they MUST NOT be used on roads, pavements, footpaths or bridleways, and off-road machines MUST NOT use cycle paths either. Any motor vehicle used on the road MUST meet legal standards and be registered, taxed and insured, and even then it MUST NOT be ridden on the pavement.
How do I check what I can drive?
Use the View your driving licence information service on GOV.UK. It lists your categories, codes and any points.
Looking for lessons or an instructor? Our sister site Compare Driving Instructors covers lesson prices and choosing an instructor.
Related: provisional licence rules, driving eyesight rules and car documents. Back to the main guide: Learning to Drive in Great Britain.
Sources
- GOV.UK, “Driving licence categories” (gov.uk)
- Department for Transport, “The Highway Code: Annex 2. Motorcycle licence requirements” (gov.uk)
- GOV.UK, “Towing with a car” (gov.uk)
- GOV.UK, “Driving licence codes” (gov.uk)
- GOV.UK, “Learn to drive a car: step by step” (gov.uk)